CrossDot is a student-led studio born from spontaneous ideas as part of a six-month master’s project. Created by two students, it became a space to explore freely beyond assignments and predefined outcomes. Instead of producing a single film or filler showreel shots, we developed eight animation pieces across advertising, music videos, and short-form storytelling.

Fachhochschule Salzburg - University of Applied Sciences: Jona Melvin Grobe (Technical Artist), Hannah Rampitsch (3D Motion Designer)

Umbraven – A Dark Fantasy Short: A young girl sits by her window, watching the dark and silent streets below. One night, a strange and mysterious figure appears, a presence she has seen many times before, yet never this close. Umbraven is a dark, atmospheric short film created in Blender that combines 2D and 3D animation to explore loneliness, mortality and the quiet tension between fear and fascination.

Hochschule Mainz — University of Applied Sciences: Pia Christ (Director, Art Director), Aleksan Kirci (3D Lead Animator)

On the Road to Caen is an 18-min historical noir road movie following refugees on the eve of D-Day. The 100+ VFX shots focus on seamlessly compositing green screen performances with background plates, integrating detailed 3D models of 1940s vehicles, and creating complex digital extensions to bring this atmospheric nighttime escape to life.

Technische Hochschule Ostwestfalen-Lippe - University of Applied Sciences and Art: Sören Meinke (Compositing & 3D Artist) and Simon Weck (Compositing)

Blue Tent follows a young girl who is intrigued by a homeless man’s makeshift home near her playground. In this film, we wanted to explore questions of marginality, how certain people, spaces, and ways of living are pushed to the edges of society, and by adopting a child’s perspective invite the audience to rediscover this topic through curiosity.

Hochschule Darmstadt - University of Applied Sciences: Tshimi Lama (Director), Lucia Otto (Production Manager & Animator)

The Tyrant: 1 shot, 15 days and 12 dedicated students… VFX is teamwork! In the fifth semester we worked together for 15 days on a single scene. Everyone  contributed their skills to create a mystical world. Through this talk, we want to share not only the technical aspects of the project, but also the lessons we learned about teamwork and communication.

ifs Internationale Filmschule Köln:  Eduardo Romero Rodríguez (Compositing Artist), Luis Kaßenberg (Pipeline, On Set Supervisor),  Aljoscha Krüsmann (3D Artist)